Infant&#39;s sleeping garment combination



May 28,

L- L- STEIGERWALD INFANTS SLEEPING GARMENT COMBINATION Filed May 11, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Patented May 28, 1946 FFICE INFANT S SLEEPING GARMEN COMBINATION Libera L. Steigerwald, Chicago, 111. Application May 11, 1942, Serial No. 442,567 I 2 Claims. (org-114) This invention relates to an infants sleeping garment combination, and more particularly to An object of the invention is to provide a sleeping garment combination article which maybe secured to the lower portion of the body of an infant or child and may be attached or fastened to a bed to securely retain the infant in position in the bed and beneath the covers thereof. Another object is to provide a sleeping garment combination which may be used to retain an infant in position in bed and which is substantially free of. portions or straps extending about the upper portion of the infant's body and which thus avoids danger of injuring the child. Still another object is to provide an article which may be secured to the lower portion of the body ofa child to prevent movement ofthe child from beneath the covers of a bed while at the same time permitting a substantial freedom of movement for the child within the bed.

Another object of the invention is to provide in a sleeping garment combination, a bed cover which is easily maintained in position over an infant in the bed. Yet another object is to provide a combination of a garment, a fastening member, and a bed cover wherein the garment is secured to the fastening member and the member to the bed cover, and the cover is fixed in position on the bed. A further object is to provide a bed cover having longitudinal recesses therein, providing freedom of movement for an infant beneath the cover. Still another object is to provide a fastening member which is so shaped and constructed as to provide a short central longitudinal portion for maintaining a child in position with respect to the bed, and longer loose longitudinal side portions which permit freedom of movement of the child.

Other features and advantages will appear from the following specification and drawings, in which- Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the bed cover combination in position to be secured to the four corners of a bed; Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the underside of the bed cover and of the fastening member and garment secured thereto; Fig. 3 is a, fragmentary detail longitudinal sectional view taken along the line 33 of Fig. 2; Fig. 4 is a plan view of the parts composing the bedcover disposed in separated relation; and Fig. 5 is a plan view of the fastening member showing the shape of the member when unattached to the bed cover or bed, p

In the embodiment of the invention described herein, and referring particularly to Figs. 1 and 2, the bed cover In may include a substantially rectangular sheet portion Hand gores l2 and I3 secured thereto, the gores l2 and I3 having an arcuate periphery, at least on one side thereof. The arcuate portion of the periphery of the gores l2 and I3 is secured to the side edges of the rectangular sheet ll, forming the seams l4 and I5. By securing the arcuate edges of the gores l2 and I3 to the straight edges of the sheet, a longitudinal recess is formed within the sheet.

At one end of the sheet is a flap i6 which, if desired, may have a wide hem I1 along the edge thereof. The flap [6 is secured along the end edge of the sheet I! at the seam l8. Tie members i9, 20, 2| and 22 may be attached in any suitable manner to the corners of the sheet II. If desired, the tie members 2| and 22, for example, may extend along the seam l8 and be secured thereto.

A fastening member 23 is secured to the other end of the sheet I I, with the end of the fastening member being secured along the straight end edge of the sheet II at the seam 24. The fastening member 23 is preferably of such a shape and construction that the central longitudinal portion of the member, when the member is secured tothe sheet H, is shorter than the longitudinal side portions of the member. With this construction, when the fastening member is in position wherein the central longitudinalportionjis taut, the longitudinal side'portions of this member are loose.

A garment 25, which is adapted to be removably secured to the body of the infant or child, may be releasably attached to the fastening member 23 by means of the buttons 26 or other suitable means carried by the fastening member or garment. The garment 25 may be of any suitable type and is preferably provided with a seam 21 along the rear of the garment which may be opened to place the garment on the child and toremove itfrom the child. The garment may be provided with a neck portion 28, arm portions 29, and leg portions 30. An other suitable construction, of course, may be used, although it is desirable to have the garment snugly fitted and secured to the body of the child. Preferably, the

garment may be provided with longitudinal tucks 3|, which may be opened to provide body fullness in the garment when and if it is desired. Similarly, the transverse tucks 32 may be opened or released to increase the length of the garmentv when desired. With-this type of construction, the garment may be adjusted in size as the infant grows, and is readily utilized for infants of different ages and size.

A binding strip 33 extends across the lower portion of the garment andis preferably secured to the crotch of the garment. If desired,

the strip 33 as shown may consist of a pair of strips of fabric 34 and 35 secured at the seam 36 to the crotch of the garment. The strip 33 desired, be integral with the sheet H, or may consist of a separate sheet of fabric secured to the sheet l i.

the terminating ends of the strip formin one of the members of the tie members 2! and 22. The gores I 2 and It may similarly be provided'with tie strips 38 and 39 which terminate in the tie members. Preferably, the sheet II is equipped with a tuck 46 adjacent the seam 24, and to this may be secured the edge of the fastening member 23. If desired, a similar tuck may be provided at the other end ofthe sheet. These tucks maybe of substantially the same size as the tucks in the garment 25 so that the sheet may be lengthened to correspond to the increased length of the garment whenthe tucks are removed from the garment.

The fastening member 23, as seen particularly:

in'Fig. 5, may be of a crescent shape and provided with a concave inner surface 41 and a convex outer surface 42. The concave inner'surface ll terminates in the points 43 and 4a which are secured to the opposite sides .of the sheet ll 7 at the end thereof when the fastening member is in position. The edge 4| is secured along the straight edge at the seam 24 on the sheet H, and the edge 4! is thus straightened.

When the edge 4| is secured along the straight line of the seam 2s, a fullness is formedin the side portions ofthe fastening member 23, as seen particularly in Fig-. 2. 7 I a The fastening member may, as shown; be secured to'the rectangular fabric sheet |l,for, if desired, the ends 43 and 44 may be equipped with tie members which maybe secured directly to the opposite sides of the bed at the lower end thereof. B tightening the tie-members, the ends as and M will be separated and the edge ll drawn to a straight edge, thus providing the desired fullness in the side portions of the fastening member 23.

The fastening member and the garment, as

well as thebed cover, may be of any suitable cover It! is then moved from the position shown,

in Fig. 2 to the position of Fig. 1 wherein the cover extends over the child and the fastening member. The tie members IS, 2! 2! and 22 are then secured to the four corners of thebed and tightened so that the child is retained in. position within the bed and beneath the cover Ill. At the same time, the tautness of the central longitudinal portion of the fastening member 23 prevents forward movement of the child within the bed. The loose longitudinal side portions of the fastening member'23 permit the child to have the desired freedom of movement The tie strip 3? mamas shown, extend across the upper portion of the sheet H;

within the bed and beneath the cover. These loose side portions permit the child to insert his legs beneath them, if he so desires, and permit lateral movement of the child and the garment inthe bed and beneath thecover.

The looseness or fullness along the edges of the fastening member 23 permits the child to place his legs under the edges of the fastening member without'becoming entangled therewith. Thus, if the fastening member were taut along the edges, the toes or legs of the child might become entangled in these edges. With the loose edges of the present construction, the child may move freely beneath the sheet and may turn over or move laterally thereunder. At the same time, any danger of entanglement with the fastening member is avoided. The construction of the fastening .member 23 also provides greater strength in the article since there are no angular connections between the fastening member and the sheet at the .point at which the fastening member is taut.

Moreover, the arrangement wherein the central portion ofthe fastening member is taut and both edges are loose provides a means of spreading the strain on the fastening member over a greater area and thus strengthens the article.

Although the invention has been described in connection with a specific embodiment, it will be understood that this is for the purpose of illustration and that many modifications and changes may be made in the article without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. An infant's sleeping garment combination, comprising a substantially rectangular sheet of fabric provided with elongated longitudinal Zones of fullness therein, said zones being adapted to provide infolds in the sheet, a crescent-shaped fasteningsheet of fabric secured at its lower end to said rectangular sheet, the concave portion of the crescent-shaped'sheet being drawnstraight and secured along the straight bottom edge of the rectangular sheet, a garment adapted to be removably secured to the body of an infant, said garment being equipped with portions for receiving the body, legs and shoulders of the infant, and means for securing the central upper portion of the crescent-shaped fastening sheet to the lower portion of the garment, the central lon itudinal portion of the fastening sheet being shorter than the adjacent-longitudinal side Dortions thereof whereby, when the fastening sheet is in substantial longitudinal alignment with the bed and the central longitudinal portion thereof is taut. the adjacent side portions are loose.

2. An infants sleeping garment combination, comprising a garment adapted to be removably secured to the body of an infant, a fabric fastening sheet having an edge at the lower end thereof of concave shape and releasably attached at its upper end to the lower portion of said garthereof and in transverse alignment therewith whereby zones of fullness are provided in said longitudinal side portions.

LIBERA L. STEIGERWALD. 

